The line comes from John Steinbeck’s 1952 novel East of Eden. It’s a deceptively simple sentence, and one I admittedly glossed over when I first read the book. Only later did I really understand what Steinbeck was getting at. The pursuit of perfection can be paralyzing because perfection is impossible. Once that burden is removed, though, we are free to simply try to be good. That idea fits closely with one of East of Eden’s central themes: “timshel,” the belief that human beings have the ability to choose what kind of person they become. Steinbeck makes goodness feel ordinary and attainable. You do not have to be flawless or heroic. Kindness, generosity, compassion, and making the better choice when you can are enough. In simpler terms: perfection is the enemy of good.